United Nations (UN)

Denmark and the United Nations
Denmark was one of the founding members of the United Nations at its establishment in 1945 and has ever since been a staunch supporter of the United Nations system and for promoting a strong, united, efficient and effective organization. Denmark is committed to the UN's work and interacts closely with numerous Committees, Organs, Funds and Programs, under the aegis of the United Nations, to ensure that Danish views and interests are properly reflected. Denmark is a strong supporter of a number of the UN programs including UNDP, UNFPA and UNICEF.

Denmark has served as a non-permanent member of the Security Council four times: 1953–1954, 1967–1968, 1985–1986 and 2005-2006.

It also remains a Danish priority to support reforms in the UN, to ensure the right prioritization of efforts and resources, while focusing on the areas where the UN can make a difference. This especially applies to: Efforts to maintain peace and security, including peacekeeping operations, support for fragile states and conflict prevention, and reconstruction efforts in post-conflict situations; Establishment of standards in the formulation of and compliance to international rules, not least in the area of international law and human rights; Setting the agenda in the development area, where the UN, including with the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, have set concrete goals in respect to poverty reduction, education, gender, health, child and maternal health and the environment. At the centre of these efforts is the work to ensure effective co-operation between international organizations.

Within the field of multilateral development co-operation, Denmark focuses on effectiveness and poverty alleviation. Danish multilateral efforts are also targeted towards contributing to supporting the genuine inclusion of developing countries in international political and economic cooperation. In this respect, Denmark emphasizes the necessity of including a broad popular participation in this process.

Denmark continues to rank among the leading countries in the world in respect of the level of development assistance and in assessed contributions per capita. In 2015, development assistance reached the level of approx. 0.73 per cent of Danish GNI*. With this high level, Denmark will maintain its position among the five countries in the world that meet the UN target of providing at least 0.7 per cent of GNI in development assistance.

*Source: “Priorities of the Danish Government for Danish Development Assistance, Overview of the Development Assistance Budget 2011-2015” (DANIDA August 2010)